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On a recent business trip to Montgomery, I happened to drive through the town of Greenville, AL. As I headed south, I spotted Bates House of Turkey on the right side of I-65. Hmmm, I thought to myself. Why have I never heard of this place? The Bates Motel, yes. The Bates House of Turkey, no. It looked like an inviting little restaurant and it appeared to have been there for quite a while. Hmmm again, lots of cars in the parking lot. License plates from all over the USA. Why was this big secret being kept from me? It wasn’t lunch time or dinner time, but I just had to pop in and have a look around.

The menu I picked up informed me that the Bates Turkey operation began over 80 years ago. In June of 1923, Mr. Bates received 9 turkey eggs as a wedding present from his Aunt Mamie (not sure where you would register for that type of gift). This led to a full-fledged turkey farm that has now been in the Bates family for 5 generations. The farm, I learn, is located in Fort Deposit, AL — just 12 miles down the road. A short ride from the farm to the table … gotta like that.

Bates House of Turkey is proud to offer this naturally nutritional meat for your eating enjoyment. Bates House of Turkey uses only select turkeys from Bates Turkey Farm. Home cooking is their specialty, because they use fresh vegetables and farm fresh turkeys. Bates’ Roast Turkey dinners are just like the old fashioned dinner your grandmother would cook. The Bates family supervises your turkey from the egg to the table to assure you the finest turkey ANYWHERE.

As I continued on my way home to Fairhope, I made a mental note to return to the Bates House of Turkey for a meal one day soon. In fact, that was not going to be soon enough for me. I recalled the packed dining room and the happy, satisfied faces on the patrons (mostly wise old folks who know something about a good home cooked Southern meal). It was then that I decided to order myself a hickory smoked turkey breast when I arrived home that evening. Momma didn’t raise no dummy.

When I contacted Bates via their website, they seemed excited to make my acquaintance as well. They quickly offered to send me a turkey breast for us to review at no charge whatsoever. It arrived at my front door this week in a well-packed styrofoam container. Upon lifting the top off the box, the aroma of delicious hickory smoked white meat permeated the entire house. Why don’t they make air freshener out of this stuff??? Well, that’s just me thinking out loud.

Last night we heated the bird (300 degrees for about 15 minutes) and served it with some cornbread stuffing, stewed zucchini & sweet onions, and a nice Pinot Grigio. The brilliantly white turkey slices really needed no gravy or sauce. It was so incredibly moist and tender – no knife required. It was nice and smoky thorughout, but the slices closest to the bird’s golden brown skin were just sublime. The dining table got very quiet and we all chowed like it was a certain Thursday in November. Yes, we had reason to give thanks — even if it was late April.

This is not your typical corporate-run poultry horror show, folks. Far from it. These happy, healthy birds are farm raised with a TLC that shines through with each and every bite. I’ve had some wonderful turkey meals in my day, but honestly can’t recall enjoying one any more than I did this go around. The folks at Bates really know what they are doing. Alfred Hitchcock’s “Bates Motel” turned out to be a house of horrors. But the Bates House of Turkey promises nothing but sweet dreams of the most delicious turkey you may ever put in your mouth. So check in with Bates — and check it out!

One Response to “Nothing Scary about Alabama’s Bates House of Turkey”

Really? I stopped at this place on the way down to the beach.I LOVE turkey and I figured a “house of turkey” would be a can’t miss place. Good lord. was I wrong! What little turkey I received with my sandwich seemed processed and the “turkey dinner” my brother had was just as bad. Don’t get me started on the “sides”. If not for the location and the huge sign this place would outta business in about a month. I’ve had better sandwiches and turkey @ Kroger,Walmart,Publix. The turkey sandwich a Arby’s is 5 star meal compared to this place.

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